This and That

A little fun in a short amount of time.

I took an unfinished page from my journal.

Added a found leaf.

Did a little scanning.

Added a Haiku by Basho.

And this is what I got.

Autumn approaches

and the heart begins to dream

of four-tatami rooms

~Basho

***

- We are back to summer here. High humidity and temps in the 90's. 

Argggggh.

- I am going to the museum today. It has been a very long time since I've been there.

Having lunch with a museum friend and I'll see the new China Gallery.

Perhaps pick up a research assignment for the Japanese Gallery ... the last to be added.

- Mr. Dragon has taken some steps backward. 

We try to laugh as much as we can!

- The Houston Zoo has been featured on the National Geographic Channel in a program called

Zoo Confidential. Three episodes were filmed here. The second one was last night.

I've enjoyed each one. One of my favorite keepers was on last night ... Lynn ... primate supervisor along with one of my favorite lemurs ... Sifaka.

One more episode next week.

- Almost forgot! The squirrel family (famous for eating the hibiscus blooms), finished off the tangerines yesterday. Little buggers!!!!
The bird food just isn't enough or all the acorns on the ground.
Does this mean a *real* winter is coming?????

Wishing you well!

Joy!

Mosaic Monday

One of my best buddies is an art teacher.

Every now and then we have a play day.

She tries out new techniques on me or shows me things she has recently learned.

Sometimes I help do the backgrounds for a project she has coming up in class.

Last week we got together.

The piece I'm working on is 24" x 24" -- larger than I usually work.

When it is finished it folds to make a book.

I have a long way to go before it is finished.

More paint, Caran deArche watersoluble pastels, more stamps, more texture.

The black and white areas need to be colored in.

I need to work on some of the transparencies that didn't get gelled down completely.

You get the idea.

If you look carefully, you can see some of the wonderful texture that is beginning to pop out.

Last week I showed you some crochet I'm working on.

Here is the pumpkin block all finished except for the row of black squares that goes all the way around.

The shadow on the right side -- Miss Cassie was checking out HER new blanket.

Wondering if it would be finished in time for Halloween.

The lovely Mary is the hostess for Mosaic Monday.

Each mosaic is different. Each has a story to tell.

You'll enjoy your visit!

***

Snippets:

- The washing machine died on Sunday. One load of wash to finish. We put a makeshift clothesline in the garage and hung all the wet things. Mr. Dragon says the washer needs a new transmission. (Who knew a washing machine had a transmission?!!!) Since China bought Maytag, Maytag just isn't the same.

I think we will try to have it repaired and see what happens before we take the plunge and buy something new.

- Busy week coming up. My turn at the doctor appointments. Monday I see my eye guy. Wednesday I go in for the lab work for the appointment I have with the internist the following week.

- Last week we took little Riley to the vet for her cardiac exam. The vet who does the ultrasound on her is reported to have said "I don't know why this cat is still alive."!!!! Our vet tweaked her meds and home she came. She's in no pain and seems to enjoy watching Teddy and Cassie. We will carry on.

- The weather guys are promising us a cool front. Nothing yet, but I'll continue to hope!

Wishing you well and a JOY filled week!

This and That

We had some wonderful Tilapia filets.

I didn't want to grill them (too hot outside).

No blackened (Mr. Dragon isn't ready for that much spice).

So, this is what I did.

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

- Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with (S)Pam

- Place Tilapia filets on cookie sheet

- Sprinkle the filets lightly with dried thyme

- Sprinkle the filets lightly with Parmesan cheese

- Bake until the cheese starts to melt.

Simple, easy and oh, so good!

(Dishes found at Cost Plus World Market)

***

Snippets:

- It is still HOT, but we are only running the drip in the garden every other day. Still watering everything in pots daily. (Let's not talk about last months water bill!)

- Picked up a cherry tomato plant  and some dianthus at Home Depot yesterday.

- Busy week this week. Mr. Dragon is six months post-op and is having tests this week. We ask once again to keep those prayers, good thoughts, white light, good juju, vibes coming and we thank YOU.

- Astros baseball game on Wednesday. 

- Because it is a crazy week I didn't prepare any tea for you, but I do have a blog for you to visit.

Angela at Tea for Friends is having a give-a-way you tea lovers might be interested in.

Please drop by, say Hi and tell her Snap sent you!

I hope to have some tea for you next week.

 Wishing you well, a beautiful day and JOY to YOU

This and That

I think (!!!!) Karma Kitty is finished.

He suggests that you Dream Big!

I've decided to have my blog printed in book form.

This book covers the first 6 months -- year 2008.

I decided that I'd spent a lot of time on Twisty Lane,

lots of pictures taken, stories told and that I'd be very sad if for some reason it all disappeared into cyberspace!

I used Blog2Print and am very happy with the product.

***

Snippets:

Weather: Hot (hotter than you know where) and humid. It has rained in some areas but not where we live.

Baseball: We went to the Astros Mets game last night and the Astros won! We also had dinner at the 5-7 grill. Named after Bagwell and Biggio and their retired numbers. Too expensive, but good fare for a baseball park. I had the mahimahi and Mr. Dragon the seafood pasta! They gave us to go cups filled with ice tea. Ice tea at the ballpark! YeeHaw!

Wearing: Going to the grand-reopening of our favorite grocery store this morning and I'm wearing my G.R.I.T.S shirt (Girls Raised in The South) with blue britches.

Cassie: Cassie is growing like a little weed and I wish I had pictures to share, but she doesn't stay still long enough to get a good shot! We'll keep trying. She does have some words of wisdom for you:

Cassie says: Everything is a toy!

Wishing you well!

Playing Catch Up

First on my list are the winners of my Blogoversary, 100+ followers, 400+ post Give-a-way (that was a mouthful)!

• The winner of The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women is Crafty Christina.
• The winner of the first three Matthew Shardlake Historical Mysteries is Pixiewinkle.
• The winner of the Hooked on Murder book by Betty Hechtman is dosfishes.
• The winner of the 10 recycled cards and envelopes in the reusable box is Kate T.
• The winner of the small stone trinket box is the Queen herself, Kim Mailhot.

Please send me your address. I will send the gifts off as soon as I can and a big THANK YOU just for being YOU!

***

Next: Where have I been?

Have you seen these tutorials? And this is just a few. They've been going on for weeks!

Alma Stoller

Judy Perez

Lyric Kinard

Diana Trout

***

Snippets:

Weather: It is summer here. Hotter than the hinges of Hades and with humidity.

Plans for the Day: Sit back, relax, read, watch a little baseball on TV. Have a steak to celebrate Father's Day.

Mr. Dragon: All the tests the last two weeks came back negative. He did have a pleural effusion that had to be drained, but that is often seen in patients who have this surgery. We were reminded once again ... he had LOTS of surgery. Getting a little stronger with each day. Baby steps.

***

Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there!

Watery Wednesday

Here's my Watery Wednesday post. Be sure you visit!

This is not exactly Mr. Starling's best side, but he was sure having fun taking a bath!

***

Snippets:

Weather: It's been sauna like. Rain everyday. At least I don't have to water!

Reading: Getting ready to start The Mapping of Love and Death: A Maisie Dobbs Novel by Jacqueline Winspear

Appointments: Lots going on this week. It's been 3 months since Mr. Dragon had surgery so we are back to Anderson for endoscopy this week and CT scans next week. Keep those good vibes, prayers, juju, white light, thoughts coming! Thanks!

Joy to You!

Good Morning!

***

Snippets:

I'm wearing my gym clothes. After watering the garden I'm off to the gym.

I'm reading two books: THE BUDDHA AND THE SAHIBS by Charles Green and BLACK HILLS by Nora Roberts.

In baseball news: The Conference USA tournament started yesterday with a Rice win over ECU. It didn't count for much since it was *out of their pod*. Why do conferences do such silly things? Finally, the Astros score enough runs to support Roy Oswalt. Shock!

The weather: Hot and Humid.